Just Stick to the Script
by Splinter-the-dragonqueen
Summary: Viewtiful Joe considered himself to be an expert in Movie Land. He knew all the tropes of a good movie and what it took to be a good hero. When Joe finds himself being thrown into a movie that does not follow the standard tropes, he finds he may just have to help change the script all together just to stay alive.
1. Chapter 1

Just Stick to the Script

...

Hey fellow Viewtiful Joe fans. I just recently got into this fandom a little more than a year ago because I always find the cool stuff later in life. But I was first introduced to the game when the youtube group Super Best Friends played through it. I instantly went to watch the anime, play the game, and just learn about the genre in general. I fell in love with the characters and story so I decided to make a fic.

I'll be using the anime and games as cannon

No pairings are intended other than the obvious Joe/Silvia

I promise he won't be too bad but there will be one oc because I needed a villain for them to fight, I just made him up on the spot because I didn't want any incompetent villains like Bruce or Fire Leo (who are both very cool, but not as intimidating as I'd like them to be)

Please give it a chance before you click away :)

Warning: Rated M for blood, language, and NEAR character death (no one dies I promise)

...

Chapter 1: The Fallen Hero

"Is this the place?"

"Yeah, that's it alright."

"Okay, I'm gunna land her then in that opening."

"Try and make it smoother than your usual attempts please."

"Oh come on Junior, I've been practicing! Watch!"

"Joe watch out for that-"

"Woops."

"-Building...Blue's going to kill you if you scratch the paint again."

"Hey Six Machine is mine now, I can scratch the paint if I want to...but we don't have to tell him that I scratched the paint again."

"So far this rescue mission is going great."

"Hey we haven't even started dude!"

"When do you want to start then?"

"How about right...now." Joe set down the Six Machine nicely in the small clearing on the outskirts of town. He shut down the engines and sent a small smirk at his partner. "See, great landing to start off this great mission!"

"Whatever Joe." Captain Blue Junior couldn't help but smile at his friends' never ending optimism. He hopped out of the snug little plane and onto the asphalt.

Joe quickly followed him, looking around. The city was a desolate setting. The streets were bare; no cars or people, just small plants growing from the multitude of cracks that covered the asphalt.

"So this is the new movie place?"

"Yeah, this is where Blue told us to go." Junior said.

"This city seems deserted. You sure it's the right place?" Joe asked as he looked up at one of the tall decaying buildings that stood above them.

"Yeah, this is definitely the place." Junior confirmed. "We certainly haven't been here before, I would have remembered a weird place like this."

"Well, I guess we should just keep wandering around until we find someone. I mean, this place can't be completely empty can it?" Joe pointed out, taking the lead as the pair strolled down the cracked street.

Walking down the deserted streets made Joe a little more on edge. His V watch felt warm on his wrist, as if calling to him to suite up.

Joe and Junior quickly went about checking some of the places in the city. The buildings were super creepy. Some housed huge offices and others had nothing in them at all. But each one was more run down and deserted than the next.

It would have been impossible to search each of the buildings thoroughly though. They were much too big. It definitely reminded Joe of Los Angeles near his home, minus about nine million people.

They soon gave up looking in each building and decided to walk down the main road that cut through the city.

"I don't know about this Joe. This is so strange. There's never been a town in movie land that was completely empty before." Junior said, rubbing the back of his head nervously.

"Yeah, it makes it really hard to find a good food place." Joe added thoughtfully as they passed by what appeared to be an abandoned burger joint.

Junior just shook his head at this.

Joe smiled down at him. "I know, it also makes it hard to find Silvia."

"Good." Junior nodded once. "You really need to work on your heroic priorities."

"Hey Im getting there aren't I?" Joe laughed, putting his hands behind his head. "And besides, she's a hero too now. I don't have to worry as much about her. She's getting better at fighting."

"Yeah, but she still got herself captured." Junior pointed out. "If she really wants to prove herself, she shouldn't get captured."

"And how many times have you been captured?" Joe smirked down at his little buddy.

Junior elbowed Joe, cutting off the laughter that was about to follow. "That's not important."

Joe just shrugged. "She'll get there. I was bad at the beginning too."

"You can say that again." Junior met his smirk with one of his own.

"Hey you weren't so hot starting out yourself!" Joe said as he jumped over a large crack in the road.

"I didn't have powers, what's your excuse." Junior followed suite.

"Touche." Joe said. "But whatever dude. I'm just happy to be going out on hero duty again. It's been sorta quiet with gedow gone."

"Agreed." Junior nodded. Then something caught his eye. "Hey what's that up ahead?" He said pointing.

Joe looked up to where Junior was pointing. There was a large clearing in the middle of the tall buildings. It looked like a huge traffic circle. In the middle of the clearing was a basin surrounded by a small circle of dead grass.

Joe and Junior approached the basin.

Joe stood back a little, suddenly feeling very cautious. They were completely exposed in the clearing. If someone attacked they would have little room to hide.

He quickly shoved those thoughts to the back of his head though. There was no one here. No one would attack.

"It looks like this used to be a statue." Junior said, getting a closer look at the crumbled rocks on top of the basin. "Guess it must've broke like the rest of the city."

Suddenly a deathly cold breeze blew around the two, stirring some of the dead grass.

Joe shivered, not liking the vibe this place gave off at all.

Apparently Junior felt it as well because as soon as the thought ran through Joe's head, the younger hero spoke. "Hey, we should keep moving don't you think?"

"Yeah." Joe agreed. Fog was starting to rise up from the allies in which the street broke off into, giving the creepy place an even more ominous presence.

The two walked a little around the basin. Both could not seem to move faster than a slow walk. Something about the fog around them was hypnotising.

Before the two knew it, the fog completely engulfed them.

"Woah this stuff is really thick." Joe commented as he looked down at his hand. He could barely even see his fingers in the white blanket.

When he looked up from his hand, Junior was no longer standing in front of him.

"Hey, yo where did you go Junior?" Joe called out. No one answered.

"Dude, this is strange! Totally atmospheric though." Joe said, looking around at the milky fog around him. "It feels like a horror film or something. Like when those monsters jump out and try to scare you."

Joe saw something in the corner of his eye. He smiled, trying to look ignorant to the figure hiding in the fog.

"So I'm guessing that means, this is the part where the villain makes an entrance." Joe sidestepped, watching the figure rush past him.

The figure disappeared too fast for Joe to get a good look at.

"Right on cue! Good job guy, really making it believable." Joe said, sticking his tongue out to the side a bit. He was ready for a good fight.

A low laugh filled the air around him.

"Why don't you show yourself now so we can make our proper introductions." Joe asked.

His request was met with a fist flying at him quickly. Joe dodged under it, sidestepping once more.

"Alright then, allow me to go first!" Joe pushed up his right hand in his signature move. "Hension a go go baby!"

The V watch glowed happily in his hand, lighting up some of the dark atmosphere. In a matter of seconds, Joe was transformed into Viewtiful Joe. He struck a battle pose. "The name's Viewtiful Joe, defender of movie land and eater of cheezburgers."

He waited for the enemy to show his face. When nothing happened for a few seconds, Joe dropped his fists to his side lazily. "Okay dude, now it's your turn. Don't be shy."

Fog continued to swirl around his face. Joe waited. Nothing happened.

"Hey, you know I like fighting and all but do you think you could actually attack me so we can get this thing moving? I got a girl to get to and trust me she is not the patient kind."

He heard something moving behind him and he quickly dodge to the right. He put out his leg, kicking at the figure that flew by him but missed. "See, that's more like it! Now just slow down a bit next time and we'll be solid."

"How about this instead?" A sudden blow to the head caught him off guard. He stumbled backwards slightly but regained his footing quickly.

"Yeah, that's it! Now it's my turn!" Joe sent a kick in the area the figure had just came from and felt a satisfying blow. A brief exhale of surprise came from the enemy.

"Fool!" The enemy yelled. "You will pay for your insolence!"

"If I had a penny for every time that's been said to me, I'd be buying way more cheezburgers." Joe smirked. "Like that's bad guy line number one, let's try something else."

"FOOL!" More smoke began to cover the area, making it even harder to see. Joe coughed, fanning some of the mist away with his hand. The stuff was thick!

"Let's see if you can hit an enemy you can't see!"

Joe's head swivelled around. He couldn't tell where the voice was through the fog. It seemed to surround him in every direction. How was he supposed to hit something he couldn't see? Even if he used zoom or something all that he would see was white. He would have to play defense and wait until the enemy showed his ugly face.

Joe felt the air rush towards his left side. He quickly dodged to the right feeling the enemy rush past him. "Too slow!" He smirked.

"Not quite." The enemy growled back.

Something collided hard with his right foot. He let out a short gasp as he crumpled to the floor.

Joe got up quickly, dodging the fist that was aimed at his head. Jeesh, this guy was fast.

Automatically, his mind told him to go in slow motion. He would be able to see the attacker.

He quickly regretted that decision.

As soon as the words left his lips, the enemy pushed their heal into Joe's right ankle.

Slow is such a powerful attack because it breaks down the steps of your fight to make them more accurate and hit longer. Joe had used it so many times on his enemies for a quick way to immobilize them or throw them off guard.

Never had it been used on him before.

Joe bit back a howl of pain as the heel dug further into his own leg. He quickly sped up time to its original position, trying to get the endeavor over with.

He shifted his body so the enemy rolled off of him and quickly pushed off the ground with his hands. He pushed himself into a handstand and then pushed off again to avoid being punched.

As his body fell to the floor, he kicked his legs around in a fluid motion that hit his enemy dead on in the chest.

The enemy flew back away from him, back into the mist.

Joe attempted to land on both of his feet, but his injured leg gave out on him and he stumbled onto his butt at the last minute.

Automatically he rotated his right ankle around, wincing as the motion was met with sharp pain.

Yep...that had to be sprained. He had had a few of those in his life. The blow had hit him at the perfect speed and angle on his ankle. The enemy must be experienced to hurt him with a single blow.

He didn't have time to worry about it. The enemy was too fast to ignore for too long. Joe bought himself to his knees, trying to get up once more...

But a deathly cold hand wrapped quickly around his neck. Before he could do anything his helmet was thrown off. It clattered to the ground in front of him.

Then his face was slapped against the ground in a quick blow to the back of his head.

Joe's eyesight went blurry for a few seconds. He quickly blinked trying to reorient himself for the next attack.

However, the blow stunned him so much that he wasn't prepared as the hand once again came down upon him. It grabbed his scarf and started to pull him up.

Joe felt the scarf tighten around him. Once he was off the floor at least a foot in a half, the enemy put his other hand on his hat.

The enemy started to push down once more to reunite his forehead with the cement.

"Slow!" He practically screamed. The world went in slow motion around him. His head started to move down towards the pavement at a very slow pace.

He spun around, wincing as his foot protested against the sudden movement. His fist moved to collide with his attacker's face but the person had disappeared once more.

Joe changed direction in midair to get himself into a standing position. He landed softly on his feet. It would have looked impressive if he hadn't immediately stumbled as pressure was put on his aching foot.

Joe put a hand up to his forehead, a bit thrown off by the fact that his helmet was gone. He brought back his glove and found it bloody. Dammit.

"Hey, I thought this was supposed to be rated no more than PG 13. No blood." Joe muttered more to himself than the enemy.

"I'm changing the rating scale. Young movie watchers love to see violence." A voice suddenly hissed in his ear.

Joe smiled, clenching his fist. "Fine then dude. You know what they say, play to your audience."

He quickly span, screaming out slow in order to hit the enemy behind him. Unfortunately the comeback had lost him a little time and the enemy had already moved. Whatever, it was worth it.

Joe sped up time to its original speed and got into a defensive stance.

"Who are you!?" He yelled out the fog. "What do you want from me?"

Joe felt air rush towards him and he dodged just in time. The fist that had almost collided with his sore leg, hit the pavement hard.

Joe stumbled, regaining his balance from that awkward dodge. He shifted his weight to his left foot.

The figure in front of him, slowly stood. The enemy glared up at him with cold blue eyes. It was dressed in something that looked like a large scarf that had wrapped its way around his body. The dirty white scarf covered everything but his blue eyes and a sharp set of teeth.

The figure opened his mouth. "I am Mist." The deep voice came from all round him, even though the enemy's mouth was open. "And I have come to kill you!"

Viewtiful Joe smirked, trying to look like he wasn't in as much pain as he really was. "Oh yeah? Well get in line, I've got dudes trying to kill me everyday."

"Yes, I have heard of your extensive reputation." The figure started to circle around Joe. His movements were fluid like the mist around him.

Joe turned with him, trying not to wince as his foot hit the ground. "You have fought some of the best that Movie Land has to offer, Viewtiful Joe. The forces of Jadow, Gedow, and the big blue himself."

Joe didn't like the way that Mist was looking at him; like a lion looks at a gazel. "Yep, I've been pretty busy. What's your point?"

Mist smiled with his sharp teeth, making him look kinda like an albino shark. "Those fools are nothing compared to me."

"Is that so?" Joe asked. His mind was currently occupied by watching Mist's movements carefully, trying to plan out his next attack. Clearly the enemy was fast. He seemed to blend in with the mist around him, probably where his name came from. He would have to force this dude to stay in sight if he was going to land a hit on the guy.

"Yes." The voice whispered in his ear so suddenly that Joe flinched to the side. The Mist had switched locations in a matter of seconds.

The Mist smiled at his confusion. "And now I have come to do what they have all failed at."

Joe pushed away from the Mist, putting up his fists in a fighting stance.

"I'm going to KILL YOU!" The Mist screeched, filling the air with unbearable noise. Joe covered his ears in agony. His already pounding head felt like it was going to split in two.

Smoke engulfed his vision, seeming to pour out from every direction. He knew what was going on...the Mist guy was trying to disorient him. He had to focus.

Joe shook his head, ignoring as blood slowly dripped down his face. He focused on the mist around him, but saw nothing.

Why couldn't he land a hit? This fight was quickly taking a turn for the worst. Joe never had experienced a fight quite like this before. It felt like the enemy was cheating.

Air rushed past his head and he quickly dodged, throwing a punch. Nothing connected. Laughter came from all directions. He couldn't figure out where to hit!

"A little confused are we?" The voice came from behind him.

Finally fed up with not being able to hit a target, Viewtiful Joe swivelled around screaming "mach speed" and tried to hit the figure before it could disappear.

Only to run straight into the blade of the enemy's dagger.

The next thing Joe knew was that the Mist was standing over him like a grim reaper, digging the cold knife down the right side of his body.

He didn't stop with just inserting the blade though. Mist grinned wildly down at the boy as he dragged the knife slowly from the bottom of his rib cage to the top his hip. Once he was done, the Mist disappeared from his side, back into the shadows.

Joe tried to scream but nothing escaped his lips. The world felt like it was melting around him. Pain enveloped him and he felt himself falling to the ground at a rapid pace. His mind went numb, unable to think of anything but the pain. He was barely able to push his hands out to stop himself from falling directly on his already bleeding head.

"I personally thought you would have been a bigger threat hero." Mist cackled around him.

Joe ignored the piercing voice behind him. He raised a shaky hand to the knife that was dug into his side. He gingerly wrapped his fingers around it but as soon as he did so pain erupted from the wound and he tried hard not to pass out.

His mind was running faster than his mach speed. But none of those thoughts were able to make it through to him. What should he do now? He was injured and definitely needed to retreat.

"They told me of your greatness. They promised me a hero that needed to be shown his place in this cruel world." Mist rambled on.

Oh shut up. Joe wanted to stand and punch that loser right in his big mouth. But the pain was too intense to even move. Blood poured out onto the ground around him.

"But instead, I get you." Mist hissed. "A pathetic young boy who goes down without landing a hit."

"You only won because you played dirty you cheating bastard." Joe let his thoughts flow into words and filled them with as much venom as he could muster.

Mist seemed surprised by the hero's use of language and tone. He smiled toothily. "Is that so?"

"You're too cowardly to fight me head on." It was hard not to make his voice quiver. He could feel himself losing consciousness as more blood spilled to the floor below him. He needed to think of something quick.

Mist laughed amusingly. "How do I know it is not just you who is an awful hero?"

"Trust me dude, Im the most awesome person you'll ever fight." He pulled his head up to meet the stormy eyes of his enemy. Maybe he could use the bad guy's ego. Every villian wanted to feel powerful.

"I see." Mist seemed to be enjoying every second of this. "So dying is all part of your strategy for taking me out?"

Joe didn't have an answer for that. It hurt to much to think. The world was starting to tilt around him, making his head and stomach swim.

"Well, I guess we'll never know now then." The enemy started to pull out another knife from his belt. "I would say that it was nice knowing you, but that would be a lie."

Joe's instincts screamed at him to do something as Mist started towards him. In mild panic, he yelled out "Slow!"

The Mist's fluid movements became easier to see. Joe knew it was time to make a move to attack. The world wouldn't stay slow for ever. But he felt exhausted. The wound in his side was throbbing and his head felt groggy. He just wanted to rest...

No. He scolded himself. He couldn't rest until the fight was over. He couldn't lose without landing a hit. Imagine what that would do to his reputation.

His fans would be as disappointed with him as he had been with Captain Blue.

Joe slowly pushed off of the ground with his left foot, jumping into the air. Mist slowly dodged backward with a confused expression showing on his face. Joe smiled, trying to ignore the pain that the jump had cause him. He pushed his fist into the Mist's chin landing a satisfying blow.

He then changed momentum in midair, using his good leg to kick Mist in the chest.

Exhausted, but still anxious to win, Joe started a sloppy looking windmill kick with only one foot.

The Mist let out an annoyed hiss somewhere in the stream of attacks which made Joe smile brighter.

Joe finished the attack by pushing away from the Mist. He landed wobbly on one foot and resumed time. "How's that?"

The Mist spat and whipped his mouth off. "Fairly impressive hero."

Joe was breathing deeply now. He felt his hension fade for less than a millisecond. He couldn't afford to attack once more. "Why don't you say we call it even and head our separate-"

Much to his embarrassment, he wasn't able to finish that sentence. His legs gave out on him and he landed once again on his knees. He breathed in deeply, feeling as if he couldn't get enough air into his lungs.

The Mist laughed. "Is that the only fight left in you? I was hoping for something a little more challenging."

"If...you had fought fairly..." Joe couldn't finish that thought. He took in a deep breath and smiled up at Mist, saying the word that he knew no villain could resist. "Rematch"

"A rematch? But I've already proven my superiority. What more do you want?"

The ground around him looked like it was tilting. He swallowed dryly. "A fair fight."

"Well I do like to crush people's dreams. It would be so good to give you the smallest bit of hope and then rip it away." Mist laughed loudly. Joe winced at the noise. His head was pounding.

"I'll give you a week exactly. If you're still alive, I'll come kill you 'fairly'" he mocked. "If not, you'll still be dead so no pressure on your part."

Joe closed his eyes tightly. "Don't you know dude? The hero always wins. You're going down."

Mist put a foot on Joe's unprotected head. "I'm looking forward to it."

And with that he slammed his foot down and sent Joe's face into the cement below.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: Unwanted but Necessary Allies

"Joe! Where did you go?" Junior called out through the fog but got no response. He couldn't see anything. How could they have split up so fast? Joe was literally standing next to him a second ago, but now it seemed like he had completely disappeared.

After wondering around in the mist for a while calling out, Junior finally caught sight of someone.

"Hey! Joe is that you?" Junior called out.

The figure didn't answer. Maybe he couldn't hear him...

Junior ran towards the figure. As he got closer, he realized that it was definitely not Joe. Not unless Joe had suddenly grown wings, horns, and a tail.

"Alastor?" He asked as he approached the figure.

"Hmm?" Alastor turned to meet him. "Oh hey."

"Uh hi?" Junior said confused. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard a new place in MovieLand was just created." Alastor said, crossing his arms across his chest. "I came here to check it out. I figured I might find something interesting to do, but this fog suddenly rolled in. What about you?"

"Well Silvia was captured and we got a tip that whoever was behind it was in the new zone...we figured that a new villain must have stolen her." Junior paused. "It wasn't you was it?"

"Nope, not this time unfortunately." Alastor sneered. "But I hope someone isn't trying to show me up or anything."

"Yeah, wouldn't that be terrible." Junior rolled his eyes.

"So where is stumblebutt by the way?" Alastor glanced behind him.

"You mean Joe?" Junior smiled at Joe's old nickname. "He was here a second ago. We got separated in the-"

Suddenly Alastor's blade appeared quickly in his hands, his wings opening menacingly.

"Jeesh, what are you doing? You want to fight now?" Junior asked, startled at the sudden movement. "Can't you at least wait until I find Joe? He'd be happy to fight you."

"Shh..." Alastor glared down at him. "Don't you hear that?"

Junior was silent, listening for what the demon was hearing. "Er, not really."

"It sounded like someone was screaming" Alastor told him.

"I don't hear anything." Junior said, turning his head to try and hear better.

"It sounded like-" Alastor broke off, gripping his sword tighter.

Junior was about to ask why Alastor stopped talking, but then he saw the figure standing out in the fog.

"Joe?" Junior called out.

Immediately the demon shushed him, almost slapping him with the blunt edge of his blade.

"What?" Junior said quietly this time.

The figure turned towards them and started to get closer.

"Oh great, now you've done it." Alastor muttered. "And I was in such a good mood..."

"Would you please tell me what is going on!" Junior said, very annoyed.

"Shut up and stay quiet hero." Alastor growled down at him, his face much more serious than it was before. "Don't speak unless I say it's okay."

The figure approached. He almost blended in completely with the fog around him. The only thing that stood out was his bright blue eyes that peered out behind the wrappings on his face.

Junior almost went into his hension when he saw the dagger that the figure held in his hands. The blade was dripping red onto the floor.

The young hero swallowed, standing up taller and trying to make himself look more intimidating that he felt.

"Who are you?" Junior asked, giving Alastor a rebellious look.

Alastor just sent him an angry glare, his eyes squinting.

The figure seemed to ignore his question. "Hello Alastor. Its good to see you again." The figure smiled evilly.

"Mist." Alastor hissed. "I wish I could say the same."

"You know him?" Junior asked him quietly. Alastor nodded.

"I've heard you've been busy failing at killing a hero." Mist laughed. "You were never much of a fighter anyway."

Alastor took in a breath, calming his anger. He didn't want to fight. Not in these conditions. The only reason he had beaten the mist before was because of windy conditions. The mist could not perform his unfair techniques in clear air. "Speak for yourself. Do you still rely on your dumb tricks or have you actually learned how to fight?"

Mist grinned, showing off his jagged dagger. " Would you like to find out?"

"Put that away. No one is impressed." Alastor growled, flashing his own sword. "Besides, I'm not trying to pick a fight with some cheating wanna be."

"Oh a wanna be am I? And how many heros have you killed? Zero? Impressive." Mist laughed.

Alastor curled his lips. "Actually the more I think about it, the better the idea to cut your smirk off your face sounds."

"Look, before you two go into battle with each other, can you at least tell me who the heck you are" Junior asked, getting frustrated.

"Very well hero." He spat the last word out like it was a disease. "I am Mist. But you shouldn't be worried about that...right now I would be worrying more about your friend."

Junior put a foot forward. "Joe can handle himself. You should be worried about the fact that I'm a few seconds from throwing a yoyo at your face."

The Mist looked down at him amused. "Hmm, this one's got character. Maybe you should be trying to kill him instead of that unimpressive loser."

"Mist you know very well that he was claimed as my nemesis." Alastor growled.

"Oh, is that true? It must have slipped my mind." Mist smiled. "Oh well, looks like you might need to find yourself a new hero to claim."

"What do you mean?" Junior tried to look intimidating. It was hard when you were so short.

Mist looked down at him once more. His teeth glinted as his eyes went to meet Alastor. "See for yourself youngling."

The enemy disappeared back into the mist, letting out a low laugh. Then, as soon as it had come, the fog disappeared around them.

"Hey, wait come back!" Junior called out. No one answered.

The surroundings soon became clear to them once all of the white faded away.

They were back in the clearing with the broken statue.

The place was completely empty except for a small red lump that laid in front of the center basin on the cobblestone road.

"Is that-" Alastor started.

"Joe! " Junior screamed, running towards the figure in the middle of the road.

Alastor looked out into the fog behind him, half tempted to go after the Mist.

He wasn't sure what compelled him to ignore the fight and turn towards the direction that the young boy had left to. For some reason he could just feel that something was wrong.

He quickly followed Junior, grasping his sword tighter in his hands.

Junior knelt down by the red body lying in the center of the courtyard.

"Joe are you alright?!" Junior asked, giving him a small shake.

He didn't respond.

"He's bleeding." Junior told Alastor as the demon finally stood next to them.

Alastor gave Joe a quick look over. He looked relatively fine from this angle. His helmet was gone from his head. There was a nasty welt on his forehead that was bleeding a steady line of blood down his face.

"Mist must have done this." Alastor hissed.

"That guy we just passed?" Junior asked up at him.

Alastor nodded. "He likes to fight dirty. He probably took off Joe's helmet and then knocked him out. I wouldn't be surprised."

"I need to get him somewhere safe then. If this Mist guy decides to come back it won't do us any good to fight with Joe knocked out." Junior said, standing.

Alastor grimaced down at the hero. Joe had his eyes closed,blood dripped down his brow.

"Let me help." The words left his lips before his brain even comprehended what he was saying.

"What?" Junior turned to him surprised.

"I have medical experience...let me help." Alastor met Junior's eyes.

Junior looked confused. "...Is this a trap?"

"No. I swear." Alastor didn't know why he was trying to prove himself to the young hero.

"But you want to kill him." Junior stepped back, putting his hands into fists. "Why would you help him?

"Well, for one how am I supposed to fight him when he's passed out. Besides you need help." Alastor shrugged. "I mean I can leave if you really want me-"

"No." Junior said quickly, interrupting Alastor. The demon could smell the fear that the child was trying to hide.

"Truce for now then?" Alastor asked.

Junior bit his lips. "I really would appreciate your help, but I swear if this is a trick I'll have Captain Blue come after you!"

"That's fine." Alastor nodded, knowing exactly the weight of that threat. "Now go look for his helmet while I try and wake him."

Junior nodded. After a moments hesitation he turned and left. Alastor looked down at Joe. He noticed the hero stir slightly.

"Can you hear me?" He asked. "Are you awake?"

Joe opened his eyes slowly and turned his head towards Alastor. He made a noise that sounded like a moan.

"Joe can you hear me?" Alastor asked once more.

Joe gave the slightest of nods.

"What happened?"

Joe turned slightly over, clutching his side tightly and letting out as small whimper.

And that was when Alastor noticed all of the blood.

It had not been visible before, hiding under the hero's already red costume. But now it was as clear as day. A big pool of blood sitting around Joe's body.

Panic began to form in Alastor from out of nowhere. He quickly suppressed it, focusing on finding the source.

Where was all the blood coming from? Alastor couldn't see any more wounds on him.

He would have to get a better look at him. Alastor was about to stand to see if he could get a better angle, but was stopped as a hand appeared near his leg.

Joe had reached out a bloody glove and was muttering something to him.

"What was that?" Alastor asked, leaning in closer.

"Don't go." Joe whispered. "It hurts..."

"What happened?" Alastor felt the panic rise once more. "Where does it hurt?"

Joe mumbled something inaudible.

Alastor noticed Joe was clutching his other side. Maybe that had something to do with it.

Alastor tried to turn the hero over, but was met with a loud cry of pain. The demon quickly jumped back from the sudden noise.

"What are you doing over there?!" Junior yelled angrily. He was currently picking up Joe's helmet and started back towards the two. "Dont hurt him!"

"I'm not, I'm just trying to figure out what's wrong!" Alastor insisted as Junior stood next to him.

"It hurts..."he heard a groan from under him.

Joe had his eyes half ladden staring off into the distance.

"What hurts?"

Joe blinked. "What?" He had a far off look. Blood was dripping down his face. "Oh...when did you get here?"

Alastor gripped his shoulder forcing Joe to look at him. "What hurts?"

"Oh um..." Joe closed his eyes tightly. "I-I'm not sure."

"Did Mist do this to you?"

"Hm?" Joe opened one eye slightly. "Did you get the license plate of the the truck that hit me?"

This was getting them nowhere. Alastor pulled Joe into a sitting position. Joe gave out a cry of pain, but Alastor ignored both that and Junior's threatening yells.

"Joe, you need to focus." He said, gripping his arm tightly. "You need to tell us what's wrong."

"what's wrong..." Joe mumbled.

"What's wrong with him? He's acting stranger than usual...which is saying something." Junior asked.

"He must have a concussion." Alastor deducted. But why was there so much blood on the ground though? A simple head wound wouldn't bleed that much...

"Oh no..." Junior gasped, stepping back and dropping Joe's helmet.

"What?"

"L-look..." Junior pointed to Joe's right side.

Alastor glanced around the hero's waist. A curved dagger was sticking out of Viewtiful Joe's side. Blood gushed around the base of the blade, darkening the hero's costume.

Alastor blinked. Well that explained it.

"We need to get him to a hospital."

"Where are we going to find one of those!?" Alastor could hear the panic in Junior's voice. "Do you even know where we are?"

Alastor ripped off a piece of Joe's scarf. Joe made a sound of protest in his semi lucid state.

"Wait, what are you doing!?" Junior was staring at him wide eyed.

"I'm trying to stop the blood." Alastor explained calmly, he didn't want Junior to go into shock. He couldn't deal with two emergencies at once.

He quickly tied the scarf tightly around the knife wound. He didn't dare touch the blade that protruded from his side. He didn't want to risk any more blood being spilt.

After the quick fix up was done Alastor bat his wings and lifted into the air.

"Stay here with him. I'll go up and see if I can find something."

"Wait!" Alastor paused at Junior's request.

"We don't have time for this Junior." Alastor said as calmly as possibly. "Just please trust me right now and stay with him."

Without getting a response from Junior, Alastor took off into the sky.

The city looked deserted. Everything was grown over with plants and not a living soul was on the streets. Alastor had never seen a place like this before. It seemed so huge like a regular city, but so empty. It was off putting.

However, after looking over the city's layout for a while while spinning in slow circles, Alastor spotted a hospital helicopter landing pad. It was a few blocks down the line.

"Alastor!" He heard a scream from down below. Alastor turned his head down and noticed Junior waving him down.

He quickly flew back to the pair. Junior was kneeling down at Joe's side, trying to push the hero up to his feet.

"What are you doing? What's wrong?" Alastor snapped.

Junior pointed to the clearing in front of them. "We've got company!"

At least eight tanks were coming at them at high speed.

Alastor pulled out his sword. "There's a hospital a few blocks from here. I'll distract the tanks, you take Joe and run."

"Are you crazy?!" Junior yelled at him. "How do you expect us to get there? I certainly can't lift him all the way there. You take him, I'll distract the tanks!"

"You're not capable of fighting off that many tanks by yourself kid."

"Well what other choice do we have? And don't call me kid!"

The kid had a point. They were running out of time and Joe was running out of blood.

A moan came from Joe. The hero moved slightly under Juniors arms.

"Hey, he's waking up." Junior said as if he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad one.

Joe's eyes began to refocus themselves. He let out a slow groan. "Ow."

"Are you back with us Joe?" Alastor asked.

Joe rubbed his head. "Where did I go?" His eyes suddenly opened wide and Joe clutched his side. "Damnit what happened?"

"We-" An explosion a few feet away drowned out Alastor's response. He waited until the dust cleared to try again. "We have a small situation."

"Oh is that all." Joe bit through his teeth. "When did you get here?"

"I found him a little after we got separated." Junior explained. "He says he wants to help."

Joe looked at Alastor with squinted eyes. He shrugged. "Cool. What's the plan then."

"You're not going to argue?" Junior asked him.

"I've saved his butt before, he's allowed to help us to.." Joe closed his eyes, his voice already growing weak.

"I'm right here you know." Alastor growled. "I could just peace out and leave you guys."

"Please don't." Joe said barely above a whisper that only Alastor could hear.

Alastor turned his head, looking at the hero. Joe's eyes were cloudy and hard to read, but the demon could practically feel the pain, confusion, and fear that radiated from them.

Junior broke his thoughts. "I can distract them long enough for you to get away!"

Joe looked up at him. He took a second to think through the words that Junior had said and assessing the situation. "No we should stay together. No offense dude, but that's way too many tanks-" Joe looked like he was going to say more but he just gasped and grasped his side.

"Well whatever we're going to do, we need to do it now." Alastor said, watching as a bomb exploded a few feet in front of them.

"Well then let's get going." Joe said, his voice scratchy.

"What? Joe what are you-" Joe cut Junior off by pushing himself up onto his knees, using Junior as a base. "Ah! Joe, sit back down you shouldn't be moving by yourself!"

"We all go." Joe smiled, grabbing his helmet from Junior and shoving it sloppily on his head. "No one left behind for my sake."

"This isn't the time for heroics Joe, you're really hurt!" Junior got up,careful not to move too much so that Joe had something to hold on to. "Just go with Alastor, I'll be f-"

"No!" Joe snapped, cutting Junior off. "I'm fine. Let's get moving."

Joe started walking forward, leaving the two behind.

"Wait Joe!"

Alastor quickly rushed over to the hero and grabbed his arm tightly, stopping him.

Joe's head swiveled around, his eyes glaring at the demon with determination; willing Alastor to stop him. Alastor tried hard not to be thrown off by the expression. It actually looked...fierce...not something he was used to seeing on the happy hero's face.

"Joe, this is foolish. You're in no condition-"

"Stop." Joe put on a smile, closing his eyes. He ripped his arm from Alastor's grasp. "I'm perfectly fine. I can walk by myself dude. Im not that incompetent."

It would had been persuasive if the next step didn't involve him falling down immediately.

"We don't have time for this!" Junior cried just as a missile was launched from the enemy tanks. An explosion rang a few feet behind them, blowing dust into the air. "Alastor, just grab Joe and let's get a move on!"

Ignoring the protests of Joe once more, Alastor grabbed Joe's arm and slung it around his neck. He lifted, taking some of the weight off of the wounds on his left. It would have been better to have supported him on the opposite side, but he didn't want to risk jostling the blade around.

"Let's move!" He yelled and started running, dragging Joe along.

Junior quickly followed suit and soon the trio were running in synch away from the tanks. Alastor only now noticed how hurt Joe actually was. There seemed to be much more damage than just the wounds. Alastor felt Joe limp every time his left foot hit the ground. He saw the pain in his eyes leaking through the fierce barrier. He watched the tears run down his face slowly.

An explosion broke him from his thoughts.

"We need to get away from those guys so that we can swing back to the hospital!" Alastor yelled back to Junior. "They are blocking the way!"

"I can still distract them-" Junior started.

"No Junior!" Joe yelled.

"No he has a point." Alastor said, turning his gaze to Joe. "He just needs to lead them away from us. That's it. He doesn't have to fight them."

Without waiting for them to answer, Junior broke off from the group towards the tanks. "Hey uglys bet you can't hit a small target with those crummy toys!"

The bait worked. The tanks broke off from the group and soon Joe and Alastor were able to turn back towards the hospital.

"He shouldn't have done that." Joe hissed underneath his breath.

"He'll be fine." Alastor assured. "You should be more worried about yourself. You're currently bleeding out. How are you feeling?"

"...I'm not feeling so hot." Joe admitted. His run stumbled a bit, but he fought to continue moving forward. His breathing seemed to be getting more laboured. Sweat was dripping down his head mixed with blood.

"You'll have to hang in there, we're still a couple of blocks away from the hospital." Probably more now that they had had to run away from this tanks.

He felt Joe start to slump from under him. His steps became slower, breaking their synchronization of running. He looked at the hero, noticing his eyes were closed.

"Joe wake up." Alastor told him. "Dont pass out."

An explosion came from behind them, making Alastor instinctively dodge to the right and dragging Joe with him. Joe let out a cry of pain at the sudden movement.

Alastor's head whipped around to spot one of the tanks from the group. It must have followed them.

"Persistent." Joe said in a tired voice. Alastor nodded.

"We should fight it." Joe smiled up at him, blood dripped off his forehead.

"What!?" Alastor almost dropped Joe at his suggestion. "You really must be insane. You didn't want Junior to fight them but you think you're capable at this moment!?"

"Issfine." Joe slurred, seeing to grow ever tired. "I've handled worse."

He turned his head motioning to the tanks. ", issonly one."

Before Alastor could register, Joe had already pushed away from him and was running towards the tank.

The tank, noticing his movements, shot out two rounds.

Alastor flew quickly, trying to grab Joe and run. But before he could reach him, the hero had cried out "Slow!" And the world moved in slow motion.

Alastor could only watch as Joe carefully timed his punches to hit the missiles. His hits were true just as always and soon the missiles were heading back towards the tank. It was strange watching the explosion that resulted in slow motion.

As soon as it had come, the slow motion went away and Alastor flew towards Joe at a rabid pace. Bits of tank were falling from the sky around them.

Alastor growled as he grabbed Joe's arm and dragged him down the closest ally to get away from the explosion.

He dropped the hero down on the cobblestone. "That was stupid. You could have killed us both."

Joe didn't respond. He was breathing heavily, gripping his side.

"Do you even think before you act? What am I saying, I know you enough to know that you don't." Alastor shook his head.

Joe's hension flickered and his head dropped. "...something's wrong."

"What do you mean something's wrong?" Alastor asked, crossing his arms.

"The v watch...I don't know how to explain it, but I just know something's up." Joe mumbled.

Alastor watched as a fine line of blood dripped down Joe's head. "Yeah, I don't really think it's the v watch that has the problem. Let's get moving."

"Uh...nah, I'm good here." Joe said, squinting his eyes up at Alastor. He looked down at his side, lifting a hand to his head. "Er...how long has there been a knife sticking out of me?"

Alastor raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, we definitely need to get you to the hospital." He offered a hand to the hero. "Let's go."

A sudden movement caught his attention. Before Alastor could react, Joe screamed out 'Mach Speed!" and grabbed Alastor's outstretched hand. Alastor let out a cry of surprise as his body was dragged along.

"What are you-" His voice was cut off as an explosion rang behind them. Alastor glanced behind them. Another tank was coming after them. if joe hadn't used mach speed they'd both just be red spots in that alley wall. "Come on! This is getting ridiculous!"

Alastor spread his wings, allowing Joe to drag him along like a kite. In the back of his mind, he knew that Joe using his powers was definitely not a good thing but at least they were getting to the hospital and away from the tanks so it couldn't be all bad.

Except Alastor could almost feel every time Joe limped as he put weight on his bad foot. He saw his hension falter and all of a sudden, they were standing still. The sudden momentum shift made Alastor fly forward in the air and the two practically fell over each other.

"A little warning next time!" Alastor hissed, shoving Joe off of him. Joe groaned, falling to the ground unceremoniously.

Alastor stood quickly. They were still a block from the hospital and the tank was still gaining. There was only one thing left to do.

Alastor grabbed Joe by the waist, hoisting him into his arms. He was extra careful not to touch the blade. He started flying as fast as he could towards the hospital.

"A-alastor...put me down." Joe muttered in his arms. His hension fluttered in and out.

"We need to get you to safety." Alastor insisted. "Trust me, I dislike this just as much as you do."

"No...seriously..." Joe grabbed at his side, breathing in deeply. He let out a loud groan. "Ow..."

"Hang on, we'll get you patched up." Alastor said. Though he wasn't sure if that was actually going to be true. He needed to get rid of the tank behind them.

"So...dizzy...stop moving!" Joe breathed out of his teeth. His face was visibly pale.

"That's because you're losing blood now stop complaining!" Alastor was getting annoyed now.

"Shit." Joe cursed and literally pushed himself out of Alastor's grasp. He fell to the ground hard.

"What do you think you are doing!?" Alastor stopped moving forward.

Joe pushed himself to his knees, quickly shoving off his helmet and throwing it to the ground.

"We need to move!" Alastor hissed.

He looked up at Alastor, sweat and blood dripping from his face. "S-sorry but..." Joe gagged, a hand wrapped around his stomach.

His body lurched as he began to expel the contents of his stomach onto the ground.

Alastor turned away cursing. "Joe, this isn't a good time."

Joe didn't respond. Alastor didn't really blame him. His concussion and knife wound would have been bad enough, but using his powers so much was probably pushing him past his breaking point.

Alastor retracted his sword. He would have to fight off the tank while Joe was...occupied.

He began to run towards the machine when suddenly Junior came running out from a side alley.

"Watch out!" He cried. "Move back."

Junior jumped over the tank in front of them and turned towards Alastor.

Alastor was just about to ask what he was doing when a group of tanks burst out of the ally. Following junior, they all crashed into the lone tank.

Junior ran past him. "Come on! Before they-"

Alastor used his wings to block the explosion from his sensitive eyes. He turned away as heat washed over them.

The explosion only lasted a few seconds, but it left Alastor's ears ringing.

"Haha I did it!" Junior was jumping up and down beside him. "Did you see that?!"

"Great job Junior." Came a weak voice. "That was totally mint dude."

Joe was standing behind them, grabbing his side tightly. "But I'm feeling like a carved turkey over here..."

"Joe's right we should get moving." Junior said running forward.

Alastor walked over to Joe, dropping his voice so Junior couldn't hear. "You good?"

Joe made a face, wiping his mouth off with the back of his glove. "I've been better, but yeah."

Joe started to follow Junior, limping still. Junior ran back to help him, which made Joe smile. The two walked towards the hospital together.

Alastor took one last look towards the wreckage of the tanks. For some reason, Alastor felt as if something was about to happen...something bad.

"Alastor." Junior called in a shaky voice. "Are you coming?"

"Coming." Alastor yelled back, knowing that they would need him. He turned his back on the wreckage and made his way over to the hospital.


	3. Chapter 3

Junior wasn't sure what to expect as they entered the hospital. The place was falling apart. Light fixtures dangled from the ceiling, chunks of drywall were scattered across the floor, and plants had begun to cover the cracks in the floor.

He was hoping there would at least be a few people at the hospital. But despite his cries out, no one answered.

"Would you be quiet? You could give our position away." Alastor snapped at him. He strolled across the entrance room, looking around.

"Well what use is a hospital that doesn't have any doctors?" Junior asked. "Did we really come all this way for nothing?"

"We don't need a doctor, we need supplies." Alastor peered over his shoulder at him.

"Wait a second...are you saying _we're _going to fix him?" Junior asked.

"Yep. Is there a problem with that?" Alastor turned, crossing his hands over his chest.

"Well kinda. Neither of us is a doctor!" Junior felt panic well up inside him.

Alastor nodded. "Yes, but I know enough of the basics to be able to treat a blade wound. Now are we going to stand here or are we going to work before Joe bleeds out?" And with that, Alastor turned on his heel and started walking towards a staircase.

"B-but wait!" Junior stuttered. He had a bad feeling about this. He wasn't even sure if he trusted Alastor to help them let alone help perform medical procedures on his best friend.

"Hey come on bud, it'll be fine." Joe seemed to pick up on his hesitation.

"Are you seriously going to trust him like this? He tries to kill you on a constant basis! I don't think this is a good idea. What if it is just a trick, what if he tries to kill you while you're down?"

"Junior, we don't really have a choice right now. He's helped us in the past and that's enough for me." Joe gave him a weak smile. "If you don't trust him than at least trust me."

Junior wanted to trust Joe, but he could see the hesitation hiding in the hero's eyes as well. Neither of them really wanted to go through with this.

However, Junior helped Joe walk forwards to the staircase that Alastor had disappeared up. They slowly made their way up the flight of steps. Joe seemed to try and hide his pain as he climbed each step, but Junior knew it had to be terrible for him. He had never seen Joe this hurt. He could feel blood drip onto his gloves as he helped to support Joe.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the duo made it up the stairs. The doors to the second floor had been pushed open, welcoming them.

They limped out into the hallway. Junior felt a shiver go up his spine. He didn't enjoy hospitals regularly. This one was dark and empty which made it extra creepy. Joe gripped his shoulder tighter as if sensing the younger hero's unease.

Normally Junior would brush him off and say he was fine but he appreciated the comfort.

"In here." They heard Alastor's voice call from one of the rooms.

The two followed the voice and found Alastor. The room that he had chosen seemed fairly basic. It was a large, open room with barely anything in it. There was a small sink, some cabinets, a table, and a few chairs. It looked more like a waiting room that had mixed with an operating room than a normal hospital room. It might have very well been at one point...maybe the wall dividing them had fallen.

A variety of supplies were already laid out on the small table.

"Junior, I'm going to need you to help me gather supplies." Alastor told him. He was currently reading labels on a few pill bottles. "Can you find a few blankets or towels?"

Junior looked up at Joe. Joe nodded at him and leaned against one of the chairs, taking his weight off of Junior.

Junior scrunched up his fists. He had to be brave for Joe. He had to trust Alastor. It wasn't the first time they had placed their trust in him and it wouldn't be the last. It was time to cast his doubts aside and work. "Sure. I'll go get them."

He ran out of the room and looked down the hallway. There had to be a supply closet or something. He started going down the long hallway, opening every door. Finally he found one packed with blankets and towels. He grabbed as much as he could carry and ran back to the room.

Alastor lifted his head as Junior walked in. "Good, now lay some of the blankets out on the floor over there." He made a nonchalant gesture towards the middle of the room. Junior obeyed, laying out the blankets.

"Now see if that sink is working." Alastor was currently threading a needle that he had found in a first aid box.

Junior went over to the sink and turned on the faucet. After it made a few hissing noises to get the air bubbles out, a steady stream of clean water dripped out into the sink. "It works." Junior told Alastor.

"Good." Alastor said. "Wet some of the towels. And while you're over there fill up that pot with water. We'll use it to clean out the wound so it doesn't get infected."

Junior would have normally complained about the lack of using please but he let it slide as Alastor seemed currently occupied by threading a needle with his gloves on.

"Joe undo your hension and go lie down." Alastor said once he successfully threaded the needle.

"I can't." Joe said tiredly. He had resorted to putting all of his weight on the wall, clutching his wound tightly to avoid blood loss.

"Can't what?" Alastor turned from his work to look at the hero.

"Undo the hension. I've been trying." Joe looked down at his feet, not meeting their eyes.

"That's not a good sign." Junior said, remembering the last time the v watch had been on the fritz. Joe simply nodded in agreement.

"It's better than not having your powers I guess." Alastor said, he walked over to the blanket pile. "Okay, I think we're ready."

Junior watched Joe closely. He bit his lip and took a deep breath before peeling himself from the wall. Junior could see that Joe was doing a really good job hiding his fear from them. Junior himself was terrified of what was going to happen. He couldn't even imagine how bad it was going to be for Joe.

Joe finally made it to the blankets. He took off his helmet, letting it fall out of his hands on to the ground. He closed his eyes and laid down.

Alastor gave Joe some pills, saying something that Junior couldn't really hear. Joe nodded and swallowed them. He then lifted up his shirt, allowing them to see just how bad the wound really was. Junior clutched the wet cloth tighter in his hands trying hard not to look away.

"Junior, I'm going to need you to help." Alastor said meeting his eyes. He seemed almost apologetic about the situation.

Junior nodded, finding the courage to leave the sink and go towards his hurt friend. He grabbed the pot full of water and the dampened towels, bringing them to the duo.

"Here, let me see the pot." Alastor said, mentioning for the basin in his hands. Junior gave it to him without hesitation.

Alastor gripped the pot with both hands around the metal frame. He closed his eyes tightly. Suddenly lightning flashed from his hands, forcing Junior to look away.

It only hit for less than a second but the boom that followed was loud enough to shake the windows around them.

When Junior could hear again, he glared up at the blade master. "A little warning next time?"

"Sorry." Alastor gave him a small smile. The water was steaming in the pot. "We needed boiled water to clean out the wound so it doesn't get infected."

"I could have started a fire or something." Junior muttered as they sat around Joe.

"Where's the fun in that?" Alastor said as he dipped the cloth into the steaming water.

He began to dab the magnitude of blood off of the wound. Joe closed his eyes, putting his head back, but made no noise.

"Im sorry its so hot." Alastor said, noticing Joe's discomfort. "You'll thank me later though."

Once most of the dry blood had been cleaned away, Alastor inspected the wound. "It's actually not as deep as I would have expected. I'm surprised the blade is still hanging on. As long as it doesn't get infected you should be fine." He took out a bottle from behind him that looked like toothpaste. "I'm going to put some of this numbing gel on it to numb the area. I'm not going to lie though. It will hurt quite a bit."

"Let's just get it over with." Joe said, not opening his eyes.

"Okay, first we'll remove the blade." Alastor began to move his hand towards it.

"No." Joe said suddenly, making Alastor pause. "I'll do it."

Alastor sat back and motioned for Junior to do the same. They gave the hero some space.

Joe wrapped his hands around the knife gingerly. Junior looked away, forcing back tears as Joe let out a scream of pain.

The dagger fell the the ground with a clatter. Joe clenched his fists tightly, making a pained groan.

"Are you alright?" Junior asked a bit frightened by the scream.

"Just get on with it already." Joe hissed through clenched teeth.

"Okay, I'm going to need you to continue to clean the blood away so that I can see." Alastor told Junior, shoving the damp cloth in his hand.

Junior swallowed then nodded.

"Everything will be fine." Alastor said, looking him in the eyes and giving him a slight smile.

Junior returned the smile with his own. "Of course. This is Joe we're talking about."

"Um I'm sitting right here. Im not dying or anything. Can we get moving?" Joe gasped out.

Alastor nodded in agreement and took off his glove. He brought out the threaded needle and began to sow the blade wound up carefully. Junior dabbled at the blood that pooled around his handiwork.

Joe sat patiently with his eyes closed. Every once in a while a whimper would escape his lips but he did not move.

"Almost done." Alastor told him quietly.

And finally, after what seems like forever, the cut was sealed

Alastor sat back and Junior whipped away the rest of the blood carefully. His hands were shaking slightly, but he quickly steadied them.

"Is it over?" Joe bit out.

"Well almost." Alastor said. "That depends on you. Your head wound is not terrible but it could use stitches. Do you want them or not?"

"Would it make a cool scar?" Joe asked with a slight smile.

"Honestly I would be more worried about it getting infected. But no not really." Alastor tilted his head as if he was really thinking about Joe a scar would look on the hero's face.

"Yeah you can't really pull it off like Blue." Junior added, happy to hear Joe acting normally.

"Ouch well there goes my life goals out the window." Joe scoffed. "Go ahead then."

Alastor grabbed the numbing cream and slathered some on the wound just above his eyebrow.

Without waiting for Junior to clear some of the blood away, Alastor quickly stitched up the headwound. It truly wasn't that bad and only needed three compared with the main wound which had needed seven. Once he was done, Alastor broke the piece of string once more and allowed Junior to dab at the blood.

Junior worked to clear all the blood off of Joe while Alastor went to get fresh bandages.

"That wasn't too bad now was it?" Joe said in a raspy voice.

"How bad did that hurt?" Junior whispered, finally saying what he had been thinking the entire time.

"Alastor did a good job. It just felt a little weird. Like tugging or something." Joe muttered. His voice was getting weaker. "Man I could go for some food right about now."

Junior shook his head. "I think you hit your head way too hard."

Alastor returned with the bandages. "Why what is he saying?"

"He said he wants food." Junior told him as he sat down next to the pair.

"Not going to happen for at least 24 hours." Alastor glared down at Joe.

"Come on Alastor, I'll starve." Joe was clearly nodding off now. His eyes were barely in focus.

"I'm sure you'll manage. Now let's get you wrapped up. Can you sit up?" Alastor asked.

Joe did not look too pleased to have to move. He stiffly got onto his elbows and forced himself into a sitting position. He leaned over, letting his hair droop in front of his eyes.

"How do the stitches feel?" Alastor asked as he started to wrap the bandages around his stomach.

"Weird. It doesn't hurt as much though." Joe muttered. He was starting to slump over.

"Joe stop falling asleep." Junior pushed him gently.

"Sorry bud...my head hurts and I'm really tired." He droned out.

"Let Alastor finish and then you can sleep." Junior told him.

Joe looked up at him with a small smile. "I'll try my best."

"How's that leg?" Alastor asked suddenly as he tied off the bandage.

"Nothing permanent, just sprained." Joe moved his boot for emphasis.

"Just try to stay off of it then. There is not much else we can do about it now." Alastor started to tie a bandage a bandage around his head but paused. "Any way we can convince you to take your hat off?"

"Not on your life." Joe stated.

"I'll just go around it then...hopefully it doesn't get loose and get infected." Alastor rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, this hat stays on at all times no matter what the cost!" Joe said. Junior had to laugh at that.

"Priorities Junior. You'll learn one day." Joe said waving a finger at him.

"Says the guy who would rather run halfway across the world to get a cheeseburger rather than save his girlfriend. I don't think it's me who has a problem." Junior crossed his arms with a smile.

"Oh yeah right." Joe's face became serious. "We still gotta go save her."

"You need to rest. We'll see how you're feeling tomorrow but for now we'll set up camp here." Alastor told him.

Joe seemed like he was going to argue, but a large yawn broke him from that. He merely laid back on his pile of blankets and closed his eyes. "Okay. Wake me up when it's time for breakfast."

Joe was clearly out by the time his head hit the ground. His ragged breaths began to slow and his body relaxed.

Junior sat back, letting the previous events soak in. He had seen Joe get hurt so many times before. Something like this was bound to happen one day. However, it felt so weird to have it actually happen.

"...Does thanks even cover it?" Junior muttered to the demon.

"Not really." Alastor smirked. "But you're welcome anyway."

"Like..." Junior closed his eyes, Alastor could see the child struggling.

"It's fine. Don't mention it...like ever actually." Alastor smiled to himself. "I'd never live it down if the other enemies knew I saved Joe's life."

Junior was speechless. Everything that had just happened seemed like the least likely events that would ever take place. "Why are you helping us?"

Alastor breathed in. "I dunno. I was bored I guess. I was thinking about finding you guys for another fight anyway." He looked down at Joe. "Can't rightfully do that when he's in that state now can I?"

"I guess not...how long does this truce last for anyway?" Junior asked.

"Let's say until Joe says so." Alastor said. "Does that work?"

"Yeah I guess so."

"Its getting late." Alastor pointed out. "As long as we're here we should see if we can find some food."

Junior stood. "Do you think it's safe here? There are bound to be more enemies out there."

Alastor turned his head towards the two large windows. The setting sun illuminated his form."We don't really have much of a choice. Joe won't be able to travel. This is as good of a place as any."

"So we set up for the night. Then what?" Junior asked.

Alastor sighed, starting towards the sink. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

The demon ran the water, cleaning off the blood that stained his clawed hands.

Junior grimaced, looking down at his own bloodied gloves. He waited for Alastor to be done and then washed up himself.

"Okay, Im going out to find food. The city seems abandoned so it may take a while. Can you keep watch until I get back?" Alastor asked, pulling on his gloves.

"Yeah." Junior said simply. He watched the blood drain off his hands down into the sink.

Without another word, Alastor flew silently out of the room.

Junior turned off the water and walked over to Joe.

He grabbed the hero's helmet I'm his hands. Red caked the rim of it along with some scratches.

Junior sat down next to Joe, clutching his helmet tight in his hands.

"This was bound to happen to one of us someday wasn't it?" Junior asked Joe silently. "I just can't believe it really happened."

He felt tears well up in his eyes, but he quickly brushed them away.

He had to be strong...for the both of them.

...

Everything hurt.

That was the only thing that went through his mind as he regained consciousness.

It hurt to _breathe_.

Every breath in was painful. His side felt like it was tugging against him, burning with each in and out motion.

His head was pounding faster than his heart. It was a dull ache that started in his forehead and flowed to the back of his neck.

His neck was so sore, he didn't dare to move it out of its position. He couldn't tell if his stomach hurt from nausea or from emptiness.

He focused on breathing, trying to push the pain away from his clouded mind. He tried to pull other thoughts into his head. Where was he, why was he hurt, was he in danger?

But all of those thoughts seemed meaningless compared to the pain.

"Are you awake?"

Joe winced at the sudden loud noise. It pierced through his skull and made him bite his lips.

"How many times are you going to ask him that question?" Another voice rang in his head.

"When he wakes up." The first voice answered.

"He probably won't be in a lucid state, I don't think you'll be able to get a clear answer out of him for a while."

"But he's been asleep all day." There was the sound of motion. Someone was near his face.

"Yes, and I'd imagine he's going to stay that way for a while."

He wanted to open his eyes. He wanted to figure out what was going on. It hurt to even think about moving.

He let out a small groan of frustration.

"Joe?" The first voice asked. "Are you awake now?"

Was he awake? He couldn't tell. His head felt muddy.

He slowly opens his eyes one at a time. It was relatively dark in the room but the small amount of light leaking into the room still made him squint.

"Hey he's waking up."

Joe's eyes wandered to the side. Junior was kneeling next to him, smiling down at the hero.

"Good morning, or I guess, good evening." Junior said to him.

Joe blinked, not really wanting to greet him back as that evolved effort.

Joe looked slowly around at his surroundings. He seemed to be in some sort of abandoned building. By the number of medical supplies am that surrounded him, it was most likely a hospital.

He caught sight of Alastor, sitting in the corner in a wooden chair, sharpening his sword.

Alastor gazed up at him from his work, but was back to sharpening the sword in a few seconds.

Joe shook his head, trying to make sense of everything. If he was in a hospital, he must have gotten hurt. Which would definitely explain why he was in so much pain. That much was obvious.

But how had he gotten hurt?

Joe quickly made a mental list of everything that hurt and quickly deducted that involved everything.

His head? Oh most definitely. His neck? Yes. Everything else? A big fat yes.

His side was in a weird state of pain that he couldn't really describe even to himself.

He rotated both feet, wincing as he moved his right one. Probably a small sprain. Nothing to really worry about.

Why did this feeling feel so familiar.

The memory loss, the pounding of his head, the way the light and sound hurt him physically, his empty feeling stomach and awful taste in his mouth.

There was only one explanation for it.

"What the fuck did I drink last night?" Joe bit out finally.

Junior gave him a weird look. Alastor looked like he was trying to suppress laughter.

"No seriously." His voice was raspy.

He tried to move but his side ached in protest. Joe pushed his hands to his pounding head. "Man Silvia is going to kill me, she hates it when I get that drunk. I promised no more crazy frat parties."

He couldn't control his mouth. It seemed to work all on its own, spitting words out that he didn't comprehend.

"Joe calm down" Junior told him, though the child still seemed confused.

"You didn't get drunk you got stabbed." Alastor said from across the room.

"Vey helpful Alastor. I thought we planned to ease him into it." Junior sent a glare towards the demon.

"Oh isn't it frustrating when someone says something when you tell them not to." Alastor sent a smug look at Junior.

Junior just rolled his eyes.

"What does he mean I got stabbed?" Joe asked. He felt so confused.

"Do you remember anything that happened yesterday?"

"Well...I remember arriving at the town with you two and then we got separated by some fog." Joe rubbed his head. It hurt to think. "Everything past then is a blur."

Joe tried once again to sit up. He had to figure out what was going on. He ignored the weird tugging and pain from his side and pushed himself into a sitting position.

"Don't try to move too much. Alastor says you've got a concussion." Junior told him.

Joe rubbed his sore neck. That probably explained the dizziness and pain. "Why is he here?"

"We had a truce." Junior told him. "He said he wanted to help...you said you were okay with that."

Joe tried to sit up more, but the sharp pain in his side made him grimace and stop. Why did his side hurt so bad!?

Frustrated, he looked down towards his side.

The first thing he noticed was the blood. His blood. His outfit was dark red and ripped around his side where the blood had dripped and stained.

Several emotions welled up in him all at once. He tried hard to suppress them all.

But his lip still quivered as he fought back the panic rising inside him.

He was the hero dammit. The hero didn't get all bent out of shape by a simple...knife wound.

Captain Blue would laugh at him for even thinking about crying at the sight of tons of his blood staining his clothes.

Then again, he doubted Captain Blue was ever this hurt.

Ugh he felt sick.

"What happened?" Joe asked, swallowing dryly.

"We're not sure. We found you passed out with a knife sticking out of you." Junior looked back at Alastor. "Alastor seemed to know the guy though."

Alastor looked up from his work at the mention of his name. "Yeah. I've had a few fights with him before. The guy's name is Mist."

"Mist huh." Joe repeated trying to figure out if that name was familiar or not. Unfortunately he couldn't ever recall meeting a guy named Mist. "Well now I know who to thank for the hole in my side."

"Who stitched me up then?" Joe didn't see any doctors in this hospital. But he was still trying to get his vision to stop blurring in and out. It made him dizzy.

"That would be me." Alastor spoke up, looking happy with himself.

"Thanks." Joe muttered.

Suddenly, Junior stood up and came back with something grasped in his hands.

"We also found food. Mostly canned stuff from an abandoned grocery store and some vending machines. But its pretty good considering." Junior said, showing Joe an opened bag of chips. "You want anything?"

Just the thought of food made his stomach protest. Joe swallowed dryly, as the smell hit his nose. He bit his lip hard trying not to gag. "Not right now."

Joe must have said something wrong because both Junior and Alastor looked at him with horror filled expressions.

Joe blinked. "What?"

"Its official he's dying." Alastor said, throwing up his hands into the air. "I tried my best, but it seems he's beyond repair."

"Hey can I get the six machine when you die?" Junior said laughing.

"What do you mean? I'm not going anywhere! And no you can't!" Joe shoved Junior, letting out a laugh of his own. "I'm taking that plane down with me."

"I think that's the first time I've ever seen you deny food! You've even taken food from your enemies. Are you sure you're Joe?" Junior asked him.

"Yeah dude, I'm still me." Joe said, letting his tired head fall. "Just not hungry s'all."

"Nope, I don't believe it. He's a copy or something." Alastor said, poking Joe on the arm as if checking to see if he was a hologram.

"Cut it out." Joe tried not to growl out that statement. He didn't want to yell at his friends, but he was not in the mood for this.

Apparently the two picked up on his discomfort because they immediately stepped back.

Joe grabbed at his side which burned just to spite him. He gritted his teeth to avoid from groaning. But a very simple "Ow" escaped his lips.

"Here."

Joe looked up. In his hazy vision, he could make out Alastor's form. He was handing him something that looked like a water bottle.

Joe ripped the bottle from his hands without thinking. He chugged down the refreshing water as fast as his body would allow him to. He hadn't realized how thirsty he was until then.

He only stopped once the water was gone. He stared at the empty bottle in his hand, questioning its existence.

"Dang, I was going to suggest you take some painkillers with that water but I guess that works too." Alastor said, looking at him like he was crazy.

"Sorry." Joe gasped out. Jesh, what was wrong with him today? He couldn't think straight. Joe took the three small pills from out of Alastor's hands and swallowed them with no effort.

Joe stared up at the two. He blinked once and then said, "I think I'm going to pass out now."

"Okay?"

And with that, Joe felt himself fall back into the covers; his consciousness rapidly fading.

"I told you he wouldn't be lucid for a while."

Author's Note:

I won't be doing a chapter title for all of these. I'm doing a chapter title for the different scenes just like in the game


End file.
